Tag Archive for: stress management

Navigating Our New Normal

/0 Comments/in /by

As we navigate COVID-19 and what our new ‘normal’ will be, there are a few things that come top of mind. Part one of this two blog post series is about our ‘new normal’. Our primary focus is: self-kindness and self-awareness are the roots of managing stressors with positivity.

How we act in response to where we are at with self-kindness and self-awareness can determine our results and outcomes with both professional and personal relationships.

We Are Out of Our Element: Self-Kindness is Key

For some of us, work has stopped completely, or maybe slowed to a ‘work what you can’ from home schedule, to working in a totally changed environment that can be downright scary to some.

Sidebar, thank you to all front line professionals: we see you, we love you, we are grateful for what you are doing for everyone.

In some situations, it is not top of mind that living in this industrial world has conditioned us to have, generally speaking ‘high’ expectations of outcomes and productivity regardless of our environment.

Self-kindness is key more so now than ever before. Self-kindness can take many forms but what I’m talking about is self-kindness first to ourselves. How can we give to our teams, our spouses or our children if we are spinning ourselves?

Now, we must let go of any predetermined notion of what we anticipated accomplishing in the next month, three months, six months and maybe even a year. I am not saying give up on our goals but immediate results and response is the adjustment needed. It’s tough and we are all living it, but just think about how much space and energy we free up for ourselves if we let go of previous expectations of outcomes and all that self-pressure.

These question may be of value in assessing whether realignment with self-kindness is needed:

  • How are my current self-expectations impacting me?
  • Do I have current beliefs of outcomes that are holding me back?
  • What am I doing, right now, to ensure I am kind to myself?

Figuring out how much is in our way or weighing us down is a powerful form of self-kindness and discovery. Minimally, ensuring that we are taken care of through self-care (exercise, sleep, nutritious food and anything else that is a positive change) can allow us to have space for those important things like pivoting, realigning and innovating.

Now is the Time to Elevate our Self-Awareness

Did you know that Emotional Quotient (EQ) is a leading indicator of whether you are a successful leader? Studies have shown that over 87% of leaders who engage with and look to positively impact their teams (servant leaders) have higher levels of EQ and most importantly self-awareness.

So what is self-awareness? In short, self-awareness is the ability to understand in the moment how situations trigger and impact you along with your external responses and how to align your actions with your values. Although many leaders (and individuals) believe they are self-aware only 10-15% studied have been deemed self-aware. Self-awareness is a small proponent but largely important in the grand scheme of emotional intelligence.

Unlike Intelligence Quotient (IQ), EQ can be strengthened, just like focusing on a core group of muscles for strength and endurance.

So how do you start? By doing an EQ assessment(s) for your baseline and looking for candid and honest feedback from individuals you trust. Then you can understand your blind spots and where you want to focus for growth. It is only upon repetition that we can shift our habits and actions.

These questions may be of value:

  • What would you want to discover more about your emotional quotient (EQ)?
  • If you were to discover your EQ how do you think it would impact your professional/personal life?
  • What areas of EQ do you want to learn more about to elevate your professional/personal growth?

How To Design Your Environment For Success

/0 Comments/in /by

I’m beginning to realize the lack of control I have over my actions. When I’m with certain friends, I act differently than I would with others. Where I go, will determine what I wear. How I’m feeling, will impact my decision-making. Even the time of day can have an effect on my patience. We have so much less control over our decisions than we think we do. Our behavior is largely influenced by our environment.

If I get a compliment on a new shirt, I’ll be more likely to wear it again. But if I feel out of place, I’ll think twice before putting it on. But that makes sense, right? Past experiences help form future behaviors through trial and error.

When I get a positive reaction, it reinforces behavior and a negative one will deter me from it.

What makes up your environment?

Our environment can be broken down into 5 categories, which influence behavior.

Environment / Example /  Behavior

  • 1. Location / At work / Dress appropriately
  • 2. Time of Day / 9:00 / Drink coffee
  • 3. After event / After eating / Rinse dishes in the sink
  • 4. Social Influence/ With athletic friends/ Eat healthy food
  • 5. Emotional State/ Stressed out/ Eat comfort food

However, our environment is subjective and can trigger a different response for you than it would for me. In the morning, you might drink coffee and I may drink tea. After eating, you might clean your dishes and I’ll leave them on the counter. When stressed, I might binge and you might exercise.

Your environment is the first step in The Habit Loop, which sparks a craving, behavior and then reward. But let’s focus on how you can design your environment to create good habits.

Why is your environment important?

It plays a role not only in your behavior but also on your mood.

Have you ever cleaned your desk and felt a weight lift off your shoulders?

I recently gave away a bunch of stuff in my office and felt more focused. While an otherwise messy desk causes me to feel overwhelmed.

This created a positive association between a clean environment and increased focus. The next time I feel my concentration declining, I might look to clean my environment.

Even better, I may even be proactive in keeping a clean desk to avoid losing focus. And that’s the type of habits we’re looking to create.

How does environment influence behavior?

Your brain is always looking for shortcuts to making decisions. Habits are a great way to make decisions automatic.

Therefore, you can design your environment to cue positive behaviors by reinforcing associations.

For example, how I associate a clean desk with feeling focused. Or when I get into the shower, my brain is cued to wash, and when I take a bath, it’s cued to read and relax.

Over time your mind prepares itself for a specific action primed by a particular environmental cue. However, if you do something different than what was expected, your mind will take notice.

If one day I decide to wash in the bath and read in the shower, my mind will say; “WTF Scott, this isn’t the association we developed!” That’s an extreme example. But the same thing occurs when you take a drink of Coke but find Sprite in your cup instead.

Design your environment for success

You can design your environment to establish certain behaviors. However, it will take time to create new associations. As described, start by creating positive associations within your environment.

This can be as simple as dedicating each location for specific actions – by giving every behavior a home.

  • My computer is for work.
  • Tablet for play.
  • Dinner table for eating.
  • Couch for watching tv or playing video games.

By devoting specific spaces to new habits will help in making them stick. The more environmental cues you use, the stronger the association becomes.

I meditate on the same chair (location), at the same time (time of day), after I shower (after event).

Combining environmental cues helps to make my meditation practice habitual. However, when I used to travel for work, changes in my environment made my habit more difficult. Another example is if you watch TV in bed; you’re creating multiple associations for your bed.

Watch TV and sleep, which can be confusing. Every time you climb into bed you’re brain may be primed for sleep or TV – which are 2 very different associations.

Try and use location cues for similar activities to avoid discrepancies. However, you can also design your environment through other cues.

  • Time – Around 9 am each morning, I drink a cup of coffee.
    After Event – After making a protein shake, I wash my blender right away.
  • Social Influence – When I eat out with healthy friends, I’m more conscious of what I eat.
  • Emotional State – When I feel stressed, I pause and take a few deep breaths to relax.

Habit Challenge

For this week’s habit challenge, design your environment according to the associations you wish to create.

  • 1. Make a list of locations
  • 2. Determine relevant associations for each location (+/-)
  • 3. Design your environment to reinforce positive actions

Here are a few examples of how I’ve re-designed my environment to reinforce good habits.

I keep a water jug in plain sight to encourage drinking.

A book beside my bed as a reminder to read.

Sweets are hidden away in the pantry or fridge and healthy food in front.

I’ve even designated one side of the couch for reading and the other for watching TV!

The goal is to design your environment to make bad habits difficult and good habits easy.

Leadership Burnout: Common Symptoms and How to Turn it Around

/0 Comments/in , , /by

What is burnout?

We’ve all been there, feeling mentally or physically exhausted, but what is burnout really? Most of the time, burnout comes from taking on too much at once, like an overwhelming workload. But it can also come from neglecting your self-care (i.e. how much sleep did you get last night?) and being isolated from friends, family and colleagues (remember early pandemic days). Burnout can be tough whether you’re a leader, manager or individual contributor.

If you’re starting to feel run down in life and at work, it’s time for some self-reflection. Slowing down and thinking about what’s bogging you down is the first step toward feeling better. If you aren’t sure if you are experiencing burnout, here are some common symptoms that arise:

Symptoms of Burnout

  • Detachment from colleagues, company engagement opportunities, friends and family
  • Not communicating feelings of failure and self-doubt
  • Loss of motivation leads to increased procrastination and absenteeism.
  • Exhibiting anger or lack of patience towards employees, friends, or family.
  • Showing signs of reduced efficiency.

Life is busy, and it can be so easy to get wrapped up in our daily responsibilities, but I’m sure we have all heard the saying, “You can’t pour from an empty cup’ – this statement couldn’t be more accurate. If you’re feeling burnt out, it can be hard to take action because it can feel like ANOTHER thing to think about on top of your already huge pile, but it’s better to face burnout head-on to find your way back to your best self.

Here are some things to consider when trying to overcome burnout:

How to Overcome Burnout

Practice self-awareness – becoming aware of your thoughts, feelings, and environment and understanding how you react to things can help you step back and allow for space to make more precise, better-informed decisions.

Find your purpose – leaning into what lights you up can lend to your well-being; when we feel like what we do matters, it helps us focus and fulfill objectives.

Practice well-being – most people focus a lot on their careers, but the truth is there is a lot that goes into ensuring we as people are functioning in our optimal state. It’s essential to take the time to get movement into your day, eat nutritious food and get optimal sleep. We can’t expect to show up as our best selves at work if we aren’t taking care of ourselves in the other areas of our lives.

Learn to Prioritize – there isn’t a person on earth who knows and can do everything, so practicing resilience is essential.

  • Break large tasks down into smaller, more manageable parts and assess if items can be delegate
  • Learn to prioritize tasks in order of importance or impact
  • Aim for consistent, not perfect
  • Focus on personal development, and learn new skills that foster growth and improve work-flow.

As individuals, we all experience natural ups and downs in our energy levels. However, incorporating conscious choices into your daily routine can significantly impact your motivation, engagement, creativity, and productivity. By proactively managing your physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual well-being, you can create a healthy balance that allows you to perform at your best.

By exhibiting a healthy work-life balance as a leader, you can foster a workplace culture prioritizing mental health and well-being, leading to increased engagement, better productivity, and higher job satisfaction

Take a step back and prioritize your well-being so that you can lead your team to do the same.